CulinAerie, downtown’s first cooking school, opened in November with two fully equipped, side-by-side kitchen studios and 1,840 square feet of flexible space. Conceived as a center for corporate recreation and teambuilding, the space encompasses the 680-square-foot Culinary Kitchen, which has butcher block work surfaces and seats 16 for a participation course and 24 for lectures, demos, and wine tastings. The adjoining 1,160-square-foot Food Works studio has stainless steel counters and seats 32 for participation and 40 for demos. Both are equipped with commercial ranges, convection ovens, stand mixers, and overhead 37-inch flat-screen TVs. The venue can accommodate 60 to 80 people for a cocktail reception.
For teambuilding sessions, owners and chefs Susan Watterson and Susan Holt (and, when called on, a roster of 20 food professionals) use the culinary world as a vehicle to address topical issues such as accountability, communication, and leadership skills. Teams work on recipe development or cooking a multi-course meal or, perhaps, participate in an Iron Chef-style competition. Also offered are wine and cocktail classes, hands-on cake decorating, and wine and cheese pairing events.